Sora no Shita ni: Beneath the Sky
by The Narrator
Summary: There's no point in worrying about things you cannot change. Yuya takes this advice to heart and seeks solitude to forget her cares cough! Kyo! cough, cough! for a while. But she does not count on the source of her worries coming to her...


**Disclaimer:** Trust me, you don't want to know what would happen if The Narrator actually owned _Samurai Deeper Kyo!_

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**_Sora no Shita ni:_**

_Beneath the Sky_

Yuya cast a quick look over her shoulder, certain she had heard _something_ - a footstep rustling the undergrowth, perhaps. But only the green, sun-dappled tunnel formed by the overarching tree branches could be seen. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. _'I could have sworn…'_ "Maybe it was just a bird or squirrel," she told herself, resuming her walk. Forests, of late, had the tendency to make her paranoid.

The noon sun beat down overhead, but the forest shade shielded her from the worst of the heat. The air was light and cool and Yuya could feel a refreshing breeze on her face, a marked contrast to the stifling oppression of Aokigahara. The path, too, was remarkably clear, making only slight bends as it wended its way about and over the roots of the trees.

_'Mahiro-san was so considerate to tell me about this path,'_ Yuya thought cheerfully, _'She's obviously a very nice person, once you get to know her…'_

  
Arriving at Muramasa's village only in time watch helplessly as Sakuya was kidnapped had been hard enough; seeing Shinrei almost kill Kyo had been infinitely worse. The fact that Yuya could do nothing at this point was the most galling, however. It was rather difficult for the bounty huntress to suddenly switch gears from battle ready to waiting around, worrying about whether or not Kyo was actually going to survive his final training. The tension between the companions (those who were still present, at least) was enough to make her want to fly to pieces.

Of course, Yuya's emotional turmoil did not go unnoticed. Benitora had cornered her in the rear courtyard and pestered her until Yuya blurted out everything just to make him leave her alone. The ex-Sansaishu listened to her carefully, but did not try to allay her fears with meaningless words.

"You should try to get your mind off of things for a bit, Yuya-han," he said finally, leaning against the well, "Worrying about things you can't change or can't help ain't gonna do any good for anybody."

Yuya's jaw twitched, but she had to admit, Benitora had a point. "Well, how do you suggest I _not_ concentrate on the fact that Kyo might very well be hanging onto life by a thread?" She gestured in the general direction of the wilderness into which Kyo and Muramasa had disappeared nearly a day ago.

Benitora did not answer right away. "I know," he finally said, looking back toward the main house. He beckoned to someone behind Yuya. "Just let Mahiro-han take care of ya," Benitora suggested affably, as the Iga kunoichi approached on silent, wary feet. Yuya saw him send the surprised young woman a glance that made Mahiro bow her head almost submissively. "I'm sure she knows the best way to keep a girl like yourself occupied for the time being."

The remark had almost touched off a round of haranguing on Yuya's part, but Benitora somehow got away with nothing more than a solid thwack on the head. And so Yuya had found herself in the company of a young woman who at one time not only sought Onime no Kyo's life, but had nearly killed Yuya to attain her goal.

Mahiro had unexpectedly responded with the utmost civility in taking care of her "guest." She showed Yuya around the house where she had grown up and pointed out the smithy where the infamous Muramasa blades had been forged. Yuya restrained herself from asking the personal questions she had always wanted to ask of the ninja woman since her first run in with Mahiro, something Mahiro seemed to appreciate. With the lines clearly drawn with unspoken thought, the two women were infinitely more comfortable in each others' presence than one would have thought possible.

"I grew up in Nagasaki," Yuya mentioned after the tour was completed. They were sitting on the back porch, looking toward the nearby woods and the cliffs beyond, not a mile away. "After my brother…after I became a bounty hunter, I got to see so much more of Japan than I could have imagined as a child. But I must say, this village strikes me as one of the most beautiful I have seen for some time."

Mahiro had looked slightly surprised at this sincere declaration. "Indeed," she replied, the guarded expression on her face relaxing just slightly, "The legacy of my family protects the lands immediately surrounding us. Very few people can ever find this place...unless they are of the Mibu clan, of course. I used to enjoy playing in the forest when I was little, and I never feared attack from predators, whether human or animal."

Yuya smiled at the other woman's recollection. "I remember playing in the back alleys of my home city. My brother used to get so angry when I'd come home all scraped up from some brawl with the other street rats. He'd go on and on about how my mother would have been so ashamed of me because I was turning out to be a hooligan."

"Sounds like a very conscientious man," observed Mahiro, "I take it that he did not take too kindly to your becoming a bounty hunter."

"No, I don't think he would have," Yuya answered softly, her gaze far away, into the past, "But after his murder, it was the only occupation that I could or would take to survive and someday avenge him."

"Ah, I see," Mahiro breathed. She regarded Yuya with inscrutable eyes. "I suppose we are alike, in that respect."

"Hm?" Yuya blinked, jerking herself back to the present. She met Mahiro's look and recalled the young woman's story. "Yes, I suppose we are."

"Is that why you travel with him?"

Yuya did not have to ask of whom Mahiro was referring to.

"Yes. Kyo is my only solid clue to the identity of my brother's murderer. He promised me that he'd spare my life so long as I never gave up my desire for revenge." _'And there's something else, too...'_ she did not add. Things had just been far too hectic lately for her to try and sort out her feelings.

Mahiro remained silent at this and Yuya could not but assume she had said something to offend her.

"Ano…would it be all right if…if I go for a walk?" Yuya asked, seizing on the first convenient excuse she could concoct to divert the topic of conversation. She rose to her feet and gestured to the forest. "I'll just…do a bit of exploring, if that's all right."

Mahiro cocked her head quizzically. "Didn't you just spend the last couple of days walking to get here? I should think you'd be tired of it by now."

"Well, um…I really can't stand just to sit around while everyone else is...and while Kyo is trying to...um..." Yuya knew she was babbling, but she was less comfortable with voicing all of her concerns with Mahiro than she had been with Benitora. "I'm kind of a restless person and I need to do something that will let me calm down, take stock of everything…" she explained hastily, breathlessly, "Would it bother you too much if I asked to be alone for a little while?"

"No," replied Mahiro, her expression dead-pan as befits a ninja, but her eyes were alight with wariness. Yuya bit her lip and straightened her shoulders, praying that Mahiro would not suspect the true motivations of her request. "Might I suggest you take the path that begins between those two pine trees," Mahiro said unexpectedly, indicating the triangular arch formed by two decrepit pines just a stone's throw away, "The trail is easy to follow. It leads to a deep pool at the base of that nearest cliff – it is quite beautiful at this time of year."

"Arigato, Mahiro-san," Yuya said, bowing slightly, "I don't know how long I will be, but I will definitely be back before sunset. Tell Benitora not to get his pants in a knot if he thinks I'm missing before I return."

"I will," Mahiro promised. She watched Yuya trot away, her wheat-gold ponytail gleaming in the bright sunlight. "But I wonder…" She looked eastward, toward the forest-shrouded cave where her brother was instructing his last pupil in his last lesson. The time of reckoning was nearly at hand, for both of them. "Would not Onime no Kyo also worry about you if he sees that you are not here?"

_  
'I do envy Mahiro-san for having this forest as a playground.'_ Yuya began humming softly, relishing the opportunity to simply stroll and imagine, if only for a short while, that there was nothing in the world for her to worry about.

The path began to dip downwards and Yuya noticed growths of star-flower studded moss carpeting the dampened ground. _'I must be getting close to that pool Mahiro-san was talking about.'_

It was only a short while later that the forest ended abruptly at a narrow, gravel-lined shore. Yuya, though she had been prepared for it, uttered a short gasp of surprise. The pool stretched out before her, more a miniature lake than anything else, its rippling surface reflecting the azure sky and scattering the brilliant white sunlight like crystal shards. The water went right up to the foot of the cliffs beyond, which were not much taller than the trees flanking them. A small waterfall splashed energetically down from the apex of the foremost cliff, encouraging the growth of brilliant green mosses and flowered vines across its otherwise stark basalt face. Nearer to the cliffs than the shore where Yuya stood was a sizable flat-topped boulder, its sun-drenched surface untouched by the spray of the waterfall.

Yuya slipped off her geta and tabi, stepping out carefully onto the cool, shaded gravel. She gingerly made her way down to the pool's edge and let the wind-stirred water lap at her toes. _'Not quite __Nagasaki__ harbor, but…'_ With a quick grin, Yuya withdrew slightly and began undoing the knot of her hair ribbon. She had not had an occasion to bathe that day, and while hot baths were the epitome of civilization (in her humble opinion), Yuya loved the rare opportunities she got to swim. After all, her brother had taken the time to teach her, and knowing how to swim had aided Yuya more than a few times in her career as a bounty hunter.

Yuya carefully folded each article of clothing and placed them in an ordered pile on the shore removed from the water's edge. Her revolver and throwing knives were wrapped in her obi, a measure against any stray moisture. With practiced ease, she strode into the cool water, finding its depth soon past her shoulders. The bottom of the pool was composed of more stone than mud, which pleased her. Smiling like a kid given her choice of mochi, Yuya ducked her head under the surface and began swimming for the boulder. It would be nice to practice dives for a while…

Onime no Kyo strode down the forest path, his progress too rapid to afford him any sort of appreciation of the natural beauty surrounding him. His mood at this particular time was also not conducive to aesthetic contemplation. Crimson eyes alight in what could only be termed peeved aggravation, Kyo had only one thought occupying his head. "Why in the nine hells did that fool girl wonder off like this?!" he snorted under his breath, his grip on the saya of his katana twitching in his foul temper, "If she gets abducted or killed because of this, it'll only serve her right!"

No one would have been foolish enough to point out that his pace quickened noticeably as soon as he had uttered this dire prediction.

Kyo stopped just short of the gravel-strewn shore, his keen gaze scanning the area for anything remotely suspicious. Mahiro had mentioned the pool, of course, and suggested that Yuya might have taken the time to explore the cliffs above it, as there was a trail that circled the pool and led up to the heights. Kyo was not pleased about this, and the look on his face had prompted Benitora and Mahiro to volunteer to search for Yuya. One look from Kyo cut short any discussion on _that_ topic, however.

"Where the hell did she…?" Kyo happened to glance to one side, where he spied a stacked of neatly folded, very familiar clothing. Kyo blinked. Unless Yuya had gone completely off the deep end, it was unlikely that she would be tramping about in nothing but her skin. He returned his attention out over the expanse of the pool and caught sight of his quarry, her head just then breaking the surface of the water. A thin, sardonic smile spread over his lips.

_'Well, that was a nice little exercise,'_ Yuya thought complacently as she turned on her back and floated, lazily staring up at the sky. _'Hm, looks like I've been here a good three hours or so. Time really flies when you're having fun, I suppose. I'd better get back to shore and return to the village or they'll start dinner without me.'_ With that thought, she executed a smooth underwater back flip just for fun and struck out for shore.

Yuya had just gotten to the point where she could stand comfortably, the water licking at the point of her chin, when she noticed him. Kyo was sitting on the shore, casually smoking his thin pipe and watching her beneath half-closed eyes that merely feigned boredom. She pulled short with a gulp; her initial spurt of joy at seeing him alive and (apparently) well was immediately overwhelmed by the acute knowledge of her current condition. _'When did he…?!'_ Her gaze flicked over to where she had placed her clothes…which were no longer there, of course. _'Shit…'_

"Did you get bored or did you just forget where you are?" Kyo asked her in a low voice that carried quite well over the water. He did not sound angry, which could only mean…

"No, I didn't, I just…!" Yuya sputtered. She blushed hotly. "Kyo, where are my clothes?"

"Clothes? What clothes?" he rejoined, exhaling a cloud of smoke. He smirked, looking for all the world like a snake eyeing a particularly plump mouse.

"The clothes I was wearing today, of course!" Yuya flared. Who would have imagined that Onime no Kyo, slayer of a thousand men and quite possibly the scariest person she had ever had the misfortune of meeting, would indulge in such a juvenile baiting game as hiding a girl's clothes! It did not matter one bit she that she had been almost sick with worry about him; Onime no Kyo was a dead man!

As soon as she got her clothes back...

"Give them back, you jerk!" she ordered.

"Why the hell do you think _I_ have your clothes?" Kyo replied, still smirking, "Maybe someone came by and took them. You really ought to be more careful with your belongings, little girl."

_'My revolver, if only I had my revolver…my knives even!'_ she seethed, even though she knew they would be less than useless in this situation. "Knock it off, Kyo!" barked Yuya, shaking her finger at him, "You're the only other person who's come here and you know it!"

"Pointing is rude. Why don't you come out of that water, and look for them?" suggested Kyo, his smirk transforming into an undisguised leer, "Perhaps you are only mistaken as to where you placed them."

Yuya narrowed her eyes. _'Yeah, that's bloody likely…NOT!' _Kyo was obviously enjoying himself too much to confess, let alone return her belongings. "Very well," she said primly, "You can go back to the village, then, and let me look for my "misplaced belongings" on my own."

"But what if I want to help you?" he drawled, licking his lips suggestively.

Yuya was fairly certain some part of her body must be suffering from blood loss at that point, she was blushing so hard. "Hell no!" she snapped furiously, slapping at the water for emphasis, "I'm not coming out of this water until you leave, you pervert!"

"Well then, you're going to be in there for quite a while," Kyo remarked, leaning back on one hand, "I think I like the scenery here. Now's as good a time as any to enjoy it."

Yuya growled in helpless frustration. Any movement toward shore would be exactly what Kyo wanted and she seriously doubted it would result in the return of her pilfered wardrobe and arsenal. _'If he thinks he can just…well, fine! Two can play at this game!'_ Sticking her tongue out at Kyo, Yuya pushed herself off the bottom of the pool and began swimming back to the sun-warmed boulder near the cliffs.

She reached it in fair time and looked back over her shoulder at the shore. Kyo was still there, of course. He was still watching her, but Yuya was too far away to read his expression. Sticking her tongue out once more, she boosted herself up out of the water and clambered on top of the boulder. _'Ha! I might be out of the water now, but a fat lot of good it does him!'_ she thought triumphantly, pulling herself over to the far side of the boulder before settling down. True, Kyo was getting a nice view of her backside, but that was _all_ he was going to get!

Yuya leaned back on her hands, dangling her feet over the side of the boulder, her toes just barely grazing the dimpled surface of the pool. Gravity peeled her streaming bronze hair from her back, and she shook her head, flinging droplets of water every which way. If Kyo was going to make a game of this, _she_ was going to write the rules - and she was going to be warm and dry while doing it. She turned slightly, checking on her opponent. _'Yup, still there. Looks like we're in this for the long haul, girl.'_ She sat up and gathered her hair over one shoulder, setting to work squeezing out the excess moisture and working out the knots with her fingers.

The sun and the boulder were warm and the chuckling of the waterfall was almost musical, but Yuya soon discovered the combination had quite a drowsing effect on her. It did not help any that she was tired from all the walking and swimming she had done that day, either.

_'I can't bloody well fall asleep out here!'_ she admonished herself sternly, blinking and shaking her head. Yuya looked down at the blue depths of the pool. The water would certainly keep her awake, but she had just started felling truly warm and dry. The wind was staring to pick up too, lofting strands of her partially dry hair across her shoulders and tickling her bare skin. No, the thought of once more submerging into cold was certainly not appealing.

_'It's not like Kyo's going to moving any time soon, in any case,'_ she reasoned indolently, looking back at the far shore. Her eyes widened and a shock of cold more intense than any glacier lake's shot through her. _'GONE?! When did he…?!'_ Squinting against the glare of the sunlight on the water, she frantically surveyed the surface of the pool. Nary a stray ripple betrayed the presence of something beneath it. Yuya shifted her perch, turning her entire body toward the opposite shore. _'Maybe he _did_ leave…yeah, and I'm the emperor's long-lost daughter!'_ she thought with a sarcastic snort, _'Well, where the bloody hell did he go, then?'_

She scanned the shoreline and the forest beyond, trying to discern a human shape amongst the shadowed tree trunks. _'There's no way to be sure…'_ Yuya felt a cold pressure between her shoulder blades, the all too familiar sensation of impending danger compounding her tenseness. _'Where is he?'_

The sound of a sizable splash behind her made her realize her error. With a violent, self-directed oath, Yuya gathered her legs beneath her and dove off the boulder. The shock of the cold water snapped her to full wakefulness and she began racing for shore, certain she would be grabbed from behind at any moment. _'Baka, baka, baka, BAKA!'_ she berated herself with each stroke of her arms.

Yuya had almost begun to believe she had actually managed to escape. It was a clear shot to the shore, a few more strokes and she would be home free…!

Kyo's head broke the surface of the water, squarely between her and the shore.

_'Alarm, alarm! All engines, full reverse! Pull up, pull up!'_ her mind screamed as she almost ran smack into him. Yuya jerked to a halt with a bitten-off yelp and threw herself backwards, scissor-kicking with all her might.

Kyo made no move toward her, which gave Yuya pause. She halted a safe distance away and tread water, regarding him warily.

"Where did you learn to swim?" he asked her, his tone even and conversational. Well, conversational for Kyo, anyway - he was not even leering at her.

Yuya raised a suspicious eyebrow. "My brother taught me. Why do you ask?"

"You're quite good. Let's play a game," Kyo suggested out of the blue.

"Excuse me?" Yuya squeaked. Teasing, she expected. Compliments…that was another story. It did not help that water droplets clung to Kyo's browned skin and ebony hair, gleaming on his muscled shoulders like the sheen of sweat. It was quite distracting and for some reason, Yuya was finding it very hard to swallow.

Kyo's eyes glinted, but that might have just been the reflection of the sun off the water. "Do you think you can outswim me, little girl? Try and reach that rock before I catch you and you'll get your clothes back."

"And what if I don't?" Yuya demanded boldly, even as her heart rate accelerated, "What guarantee do I have that you'll keep your word, Onime no Kyo?"

Kyo bared his teeth in a blatant, predatory smile.

"Ah…" Yuya chewed on her bottom lip nervously. All her options were bad, but only one offered her a slight chance; hopefully Kyo would not break with his established trend of honesty. _'When the going gets tough, Shiina Yuya gets going!'_ "Eat wake, Kyo!" she shouted, diving backward and striking out under the water. _'You can do this, girl! Just like racing Onii-san!'_

Yuya had never swum such a race before in her life. Her heart was pounding so hard she could swear it would burst and her breath was burning fire in her lungs. The black shape of the boulder loomed out of the blue shadows.

Piling in her last spurt of energy, Yuya lunged at it, her outstretched fingers smashing into the stone with bruising force.

With a sharp cry of pain, she surfaced, gasping for air and clutching her injured hand. Her eyes flew back over the way she had come. The surface of the water had been churned white and Yuya could not see below the surface. _'Did I win?'_

Something tapped her on the top of the head. "You lose," a deep voice informed her. Yuya whirled around in surprise and simultaneously tried to push off the boulder. Kyo was far too quick for her. Yuya was hauled up out of the water and deposited on the warm stone before she could draw another breath. She found herself knelt between his bare legs, his large hands resting lightly but firmly on the small of her back and between her shoulder blades. Escape would not be an option.

"You actually tried to beat me," Kyo noted, his eyes holding hers with mesmerizing intensity.

Limbs trembling from her most recent adrenaline rush, Yuya glared back at him. "Like I was just going to roll over for you?!" she retorted, shoving her uninjured index finger against his chest, "Dream on, Onime no Kyo!"

"Oooo, feisty, aren't we?" he shot back mockingly. Without warning, the hand that had been resting between her shoulder blades settled over her left breast. "Your heart beats like the wings of a bird in the hunter's snare," he observed, lowering his eyes from her surprised face, "You are shaking from weakness and yet you still have the wherewithal to defy me. Foolish woman."

_'What is he...?!'_ Yuya blamed the sudden skip in her heartbeat and the blush that suffused her body on her most recent bout of exertion. "Kyo, what the hell do you think you're...?!"

Suddenly, Kyo frowned, causing Yuya to start in surprise as his hand drifted lower down her torso. His callused fingers stroked over the ridge of her old sword scar, eliciting sensations she _knew_ could not possibly be from exercise or exhaustion. "This scar…I have seen it before…but at the same time…" he intoned quietly.

"Kyo, don't..." she protested. This was nothing at all like his occasional crude remarks or lecherous groping. Onime no Kyo was being...gentle. _'What's going on here?'_ "It's nothing, nothing you need to know about," she said in a rush, lowering her head, her hands going automatically to conceal the shameful mark.

Kyo's hand intervened, intercepting her injured one with unmistakable intent. Yuya glanced at him through her dripping bangs.

"You are incautious with yourself," Kyo rumbled, returning her gaze and caressing him thumb over her bruised fingers, "Do you seek pain?"

"Hardly something that should be coming from a person who steps heedlessly into the path of an oncoming blade," Yuya pointed out, piqued by the hint of rebuke in his voice. Her fingernails grazed over the recently-healed rosy stripe branding the skin of his hard stomach, commemorating his duel with Yukimura.

Kyo quirked an eyebrow and released her hand, reaching down to remove the other from his person. Tightening his hold on the small of her back, he growled, "I am not heedless, little girl. I have eyes that can see the hairsbreadth that separates life and death. You, however, are blind to it. Never forget that your life is in my hands."

The abruptness of his retort and the angry fire in his eyes made Yuya's heart still, her insides turning to ice. At times, she could almost forget how truly dangerous and lethal the man before her was, but Onime no Kyo was quick to remind her. "My life is my responsibility, no matter what you think," she spat fiercely, heedless of her words in her anger. She pressed his hand against her scar. "This scar is just proof of that."

"And how do you come to that conclusion?" came the scathing counter.

Words that she had never before spoken to anyone came streaming from her mouth, all reason and inhibition thrown to the wind. "I was twelve when my brother was slain in front of my eyes," Yuya replied, her aquamarine glare unwavering despite the thudding of her heart, "That same night I was attacked by four ronin who thought a little girl would be sport for their lusts. Three died from the revolver they did not know I had, but the fourth…he thought he subdued me with the slash of his sword. He was mistaken. My tanto was in his throat even as he laid himself on top of me and I left the polluted blade to rust in its new sheath." The horror of that night shuddered through her, the violent attack, the blood-drenched alley, the screams that went unheard, the terrifying, violating press of her would-be rapist replaying themselves with surreal clarity. The words were beyond recall, but Kyo had to understand, had to know…If that was what it took for him to respect her, then so be it.

_'But what will he think of me? So weak, I could barely defend myself?'_ a little voice echoed in her, and the tears that came with every sickening recollection of those hated memories stung her eyes. _'Gods, I didn't want to kill, I never wanted their blood on my hands, but I had to…!'_ "And so…you must see, Kyo…blood stains me too. I have killed…I've killed…" A choking lump burned in her throat, but she pressed on. "I can…" _'But I don't want to!'_ "…I don't need…" _'But I do, oh gods, I do!'_ Words failed, her pride failed; she could no longer hold his gaze, but she would not ask for understanding, she would not allow herself to be hurt…

"Idiot." Yuya blinked, her eyes returning to meet his. "You kill four worthless men in self-defense and think that means you can turn me away? You're going to have to try harder than that, much harder, Yuya. Your life is mine, as I have told you before." He did not smile, but Yuya almost collapsed in relief. She had not meant to blurt out her deepest sin and regret, and Kyo's reaction was anything but the scorn and censure she had been certain would result. _ 'He doesn't know...but somehow, I couldn't bear it if he...'_

Hesitantly, she reached out and touched his face, fingers trailing over his cheekbone, down over his lips. He did not withdraw, merely regarded her with steady crimson eyes. "Damn you for being so stubborn," she whispered, closing the distance separating them and kissing his warm lips, lightly playing her tongue over them.

"So, do I get my clothes back?" Yuya ventured with a cool smile, as she drew back.

Kyo's answering leer, however, quickly erased any hope she might have harbored for escaping this encounter unscathed. _'Oh hell…'_

**OWARI**

**  
Gag Ending Insert:**

"Kyo..." Yuya said, stopping in the middle of the trail as she suddenly realized something, "You left your clothes and katana on the shore, but you snuck up on me by diving off the cliff..."

"So?" queried Kyo, continuing on.

"Grrrr..." Yuya flipped her ponytail over her shoulder and caught up with him, grabbing hold of the black cotton cloth of his kimono sleeve. "Did you really run through the forest and climb that cliff stark naked just so you could do that?" she demanded.

"It seems so," Kyo answered, smirking.

Yuya blinked, then groaned and slapped her forehead. "Jeez, you're one hell of a determined pervert...!"

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**  
  
Narrator here.** Now, please understand that I wrote the first version of this story before seeing episode 18 of the anime and _after_ I wrote my first Kyo/Yuya romance fic, which was of the intensity that fanfiction.net no longer allows (sorry, all you lemon fans out there...). I wanted something that fit into the actual storyline, not like my fic, _Don't Leave Me,_ which was pure, unabashed fluff and plot contrivance. About 80% of the reviews for that particular fic wanted some sort of sequel, or at least another chapter, but it is in my humble opinion that "blanket scenario" fics are at best, one-shots. Gomen, minna-san!

I also understand that some of the elements in this story might not scan for you purists. Before you flame me, I just want to say in advance that I was using both the translated manga (up to volume 7) and the anime for the basis of this story. I made up the bit about Yuya being from Nagasaki, but only because Nagasaki was the only port of entry for things such as Western firearms during the beginning of the Tokugawa shogunate (which is how I explained Yuya's spiffy revolver-thingy). Something I also have always wanted to do was explain how and why Yuya got her scar (in the manga) and how Onime no Kyo would react upon seeing it. By episode 17 of the anime, there's enough romantic tension between those two for me to draw the conclusion I did.

Tough noogies for those of you who disagree with me!

**_For all those who reviewed _****"Don't Leave Me"_:_ **I love you all; your words of encouragement were what gave me the wherewithal to put this thing out on ff.net four months after I wrote it! I hope you all enjoyed this one.

Salute!


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